Kuroko no Past Arc Two: The Shadow's Duty
by FluffyVillian162
Summary: Kuroko is given a new mission...The GOM and Akashi go chasing after him in an attempt to get him to come back home. But with Kuroko's increasing power, a fiancé, a traitor, school, a scheming king, and a splash of love in the mix, will they succeed? Sequel to 'Kuroko No Past Arc One: The Shadow's Past! AU Strong!Kuroko Rated T just to be safe. *Image ISN'T MINE!*
1. Chapter 1 New Mission

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 **WARNING!: THOSE WHO HAVE NOT READ 'Arc One: The Shadow's Past' SHOULD GO READ THAT FIRST BEFORE READING THIS ONE!**

 **Hello everyone! Here's the first chapter of Arc Two! (\\*^○^* _/)_ Sorry it took me a while to do this. I was having doubts about how to go about it. I hope you like what this new arc is centered on. I personally think this one is going to be more fun than the last one since we got all the stuff about the different worlds out of the way, but if you think otherwise it's okay. It's your opinion after all! (*^-^*) **

_**Finally, and MOST IMPORTANTLY, I WOULD LIKE TO THANK ALL OF YOU GUYS OUT THERE WHO HAVE REVIEWED, READ, FAVORITED, AND FOLLOWED, Kuroko no Past! T^T. You guys really kept me motivated to write the story. It's a wonderful experience to have when you realize there are people who actually WANT to read your story. T^T**_

 _ **Okay, now, here's the Key so you guys don't get confused:**_

 **'Bold'' - Estrelían**

'Normal' - Japanese/English **(A/N: Would it count as English since I'm writing it in English, or Japanese since technically that's the language that Kuroko and the rest speak andthat's what he uses to converse with...?)**

 _'Italics' - Thoughts_

* * *

 _The Shadow's Duty_

 _..._

 _Chapter I: New Mission_

* * *

 ***~Shadow Palace~***

Sunlight peeked through a dent in between two rugged mountains, settling on a cream-colored structure, with the structure's obsidian shaded flags whipping in the howling wind ominously. The residents were beginning to awake, starting their daily chores and/or duties. This was not the case however, for a particular teal-head in the castle. Kuroko Tetsuya was busy pondering over the events that had transpired the previous night, while silently pacing back and forth. ' _I'm sure Marcuil saw me talking to Akashi-kun...so...why didn't he do anything? And besides,'_ Kuroko blushed a little at his next thought, ' _I let Akashi-kun see me cry…how embarrasing...'_ Kuroko currently felt like he wanted to hide in _Skodai's_ shadow. And that was saying something, as, Skodai himself, was hiding in Kuroko's shadow. Then, the boy's face morphed into one of reminiscence as he thought more abut Akashi and the rest of the GOM. ' _But, I guess...I'll never see him again, since I'm sure he already went back with everyone...Still, it was nice knowing them...They were all great friends, and I'm sure everyone will lead happy lives, and get married, and stay friends forever and…'_ Kuroko's thoughts trailed off as warm tears began streaming down his face. Despite all he said about asking Akashi to forget him and tell the others to do the same, Kuroko himself knew that he would truly miss his friends, and Akashi most of all. He knew that he could never forget them, and that personally, he would have preferred to stay and grow old with them, and die with them in the end. However, Kuroko also knew that could never do that, because the differences between him and his friends were too great. He could never subject them -and _himself_ \- to the pain of letting his friends know that he was something akin to a monster. Something that didn't age like them, and could kill them in an instant if he got too emotional. Kuroko remained standing still for a few minutes, sadness the only visible emotion in his eyes. His thoughts then finally continued to move onto what else had happened that night, including his strange outburst of power, despite his annoyance only reaching about midlevel. His expression then changed into one of deep concentration as he pondeed on what cold have triggered it. ' _The amount of power I emitted back there...I shouldn't be able to emit that much...could my seals be getting weaker? No, that isn't possible. The seals were made to last at least 200 years…'_ Kuroko now had slight shock etched on his face, as realization dawned on him. ' _Could it be, someone ta-'_ His thoughts were cut short by the sound of a knock at the door resounding through the previously silent room. After a few empty seconds, a voice filtered through the teal painted door.

" **Tetsuya-sama, His Majesty has summoned you for breakfast."** Kuroko noted the higher pitch the voice had, identifying it as a woman. ' _So it's not Marcuil...how strange. I wonder what happened…'_ Kuroko hadn't responded to the maid on the other side of the door due to the reasons he was internally conjuring up about why Marcuil wasn't the one who came to inform him of the King's summon for him, hence, he slightly worried the maid outside his door. The poor woman was imagining what could possibly happen to _her_ if the King found out that the best warrior of _Meturio_ , who _she_ was supposed to inform, didn't show up. Due to this, she had decided to call out to the young Commander once again. " **...Tetsuya-sama?"** The maid questioned while knocking on the door a bit louder this time to ensure that she was heard. Finally realizing that he hadn't responded yet, Kuroko quickly formulated a reply.

" **I understand. Please inform His Majesty there I shall there shortly."** Kuroko fixed the creases on his clothes and began to head to the door of his bedroom, as he said this, and opened the door once he had assured himself that the maid was no longer within a 50 meter radius of his room. With one foot out the door, Kuroko mentally told Selutria and Skodai to lower their auras and try to be more docile. Kuroko felt that something was strange about this meeting with the King compared to the other ones, since it was not Marcuil who had come to call him this morning. That in itself had signified that the King needed the royal butler for something that was more important than watching the Commander of the Royal Army, which, was unusual, considering the fact that the teal-head had just escaped recently, so who said he wouldn't do it again at any opportunity he had right? As a result of these troubling thoughts, Kuroko walked _slightly_ faster than normal, which then led to him reaching the throne room in about 2 minutes, despite his room being at the other end of the castle, and on the second floor, while the throne room itself was on the first floor.

" **Commander"** The guards at the door acknowledged him. Kuroko nodded, and waited until the large doors were unlocked, which then indicated that the King was ready to meet him. Kuroko now looked up at the gigantic door before him. He couldn't count how many times he had entered this room in his life. Well, he supposed that now wasn't the time for thinking about the past. Kuroko pushed on the now unlocked wooden and -seemingly- skyscraper high doors. He felt the heavy wooden and metal-lined doors move from the force his palms were exerting, with the wood creaking under the pressure, and the metal squeaking, showing the brown tints it had, as well as the door's age. Kuroko walked onto the obsidian colored carpet, and released the doors from his fingertips once he was a safe distance inside. The moment the doors were released from Kuroko's support, they began to fall back to their original place, sealing the room shut, leaving the King, his guests, and Kuroko to have a discussion with no fear of intruders. The room also had all of the curtains pulled away from the windows, allowing sunlight to filter through, and the Capital city to be seen from anywhere in the room. Kuroko walked towards the front of the room, and went down on one knee.

" **Your Majesties,"** He said, acknowledging both the King and Queen. He then turned to the guests standing beside the two royals. " **Lord Mayuzumi, Lady Mayuzumi."** While the two royals nodded to the boy, with the King signaling him to stand up, the Mayuzumi heads, on the other hand, extended verbal greetings of their own.

" **Commander Kuroko, the pleasure is all mine. Also, there is no need to be so formal, as you are engaged to our only daughter, and have, as such, brought her great happiness due to your acceptance of the arrangement, despite the suddenness of it."** Lord Mayuzumi said, his ashen-colored eyes shining with gratefulness, and a small smile gracing the aging man's lips as he made a slight bow to Kuroko with his slightlý tanned skin reflecting the sunlight.

" **Yes indeed, we are ever so grateful to you Commander Kuroko, for accepting our proposal, as well as protecting our kingdom from the other inhabitants of this realm."** Kuroko turned to Lady Mayuzumi as she curtsied, and observed her features. The woman looked younger than her counterpart by at least 100 years, as she had no wrinkles to he seen, pale skin (not as pale as Kuroko though; more on the peachy side), waist length ashen-colored hair shining brilliantly in the early sunlight, and light green orbs that seemed to currently be glowing with life and happiness. She wore a magnificent yet simple dress, shaded light green and white, matching her eyes. **(A/N: Imagine Cinderella's dress, but light greenish)** With it, she wore white satin gloves that reached to her elbows. All in all, she looked like an older version of the girl Kuroko had met in the garden not too long ago. ' _Ah, I see the resemblance…'_ Kuroko thought, before smiling up at the couple, and speaking.

" **Oh no, My Lord and Lady. The pleasure is all mine, to have your daughter as my fiancé. I am quite honored to be allowed to have such a wonderful bride."** As he said these words, he looked extremely happy, but only he himself and the King knew how he really felt. Internally, he knew that Mayuzumi Atsune was most likely not a bad person based on what he had seen of her at the Rose Garden. However, Kuroko also knew that he loves someone else already. Even if he could never meet him again, and that person may not even love him, he still does. However, because that person had most likely gone back to his original world already, Kuroko now thought that maybe being engaged to Mayuzumi Atsune was not such a bad thing, as it might help him move on. So now, with his new found determination, and an even brighter smile, he told the couple that he would take care of their daughter. Hearing this the couple smiled, and now turned their attention the King, which Kuroko also shifted his attention to, as he saw the couple doing so, which meant that they were now getting onto the main topic.

" **Tetsuya, I have called you here today to give you a new assignment."** The air in the room turned cold as Kuroko heard the words 'new assignment'. Most of the time, he wasn't given assignments, as he was the Commander, and therefore too powerful, but the few assignments that he had been given tended to not be all that pretty...for both him and the target. ' _Wait,'_ Kuroko thought, ' _Why are the Mayuzumis here? Them being my future parents-in-law doesn't credit them to know what exactly I'm doing behind the scenes as the Commander...since I'm not even married to their daughter yet…'_ Kuroko could therefore only come to one conclusion: The King was up to something, and it involved him, the Mayuzumi family, and so much secrecy that the King could only trust his most loyal servant, Marcuil to do the job. A slight smirk graced the King's face as he sensed the supiscious eyes that Kuroko was regarding him with. The King then shifted his positon on his chair to allow himself to prop up an elbow on one of the armrests, and then rest his cheek on his knuckes. " **Tetsuya, as I'm sure you know, our army is a bit...small compared to the other nations."** Kuroko nodded his head. Of course he knew. He had led and gone into battle with the said 'army' after all. Despite numbering only somewhere around 1000, the battle power of the whole army combined, with Kuroko, was able to win wars against the hundreds of thousands of members of the other races' armies, even the _Alciens'_ army. The King then continued on with his speech. " **You see, it seems that because we have been...a bit...docile for the last 400 or so years, the other races are starting to make a move against us. I'm sure you remember this from the meeting 2 weeks ago yes?"** The King smirked a bit more, as he knew, that despite the meeting being 2 weeks ago in _Estrelían_ time, for Kuroko, who was (in a way) gone for almost 4 years(Earth time), it would be like trying to look for a memory from when you were a baby when you are a teenager; extremely difficult, if not impossible. Kuroko however, still nodded only a few seconds after, without hesitation. This made the King smirk even more, but he did this internally of course, as actually smirking anymore would ruin his image of being a ' _decent'_ ruler. Internally, he was a bit proud, as that was what he should have expected from Kuroko, after all. The boy had a tendency to achieve the impossible. Hence, why this mission was absolutely perfect for the young Commander. " **Tetsuya, I wish for you to go to Mortia Academy, and find the traitor, become close to him, and kill him. Also, while you're at it, find some potential recruits why don't you? Finally, you shall be attending the school with Lady Atsune, so that she can learn how to help you on the missions that she will now be attending with you, and so that can get to know each other better."** The King paused to relish in the slightly shocked face Kuroko had, and then continued. " **You shall begin school in 2 days. During that time, you shall get ready, and learn as much as you can about the school, it's customs, and the students themselves. The Mayuzumis will fill you in on everything else. That is all. You are dismissed."** Kuroko, despite having his mind reeling with this newfound information, got up, and did everything on instinct, including remembering his manners and bowing to both the King and Queen, and then the 2nd Lord and the 2nd Lord's Wife. By the time Kuroko had managed to fully process everything, he was already in his room. The boy was so exhausted from all of that information, that the second he touched his bed, despite it only being 10 in the morning, he immediately fell asleep.

* * *

 ***~Throne Room, Shadow Palace, After Kuroko and the Mayuzumis Left~***

A black abyss appeared in front of the King and Queen, and out of it came Marcuil, the royal butler. Marcuil kneeled before the King and spoke in Japanese, so as to not allow the Queen to understand what the two were conversing about.

"Marcuil. Is it done?" The King asked in a harsh tone.

"Of course, Your Majesty." Marcuil replied, a smirk present on his lips. "I have informed Lord Takao to tell his daughter, Lady Chiaki, of him sending an application for her and acceptance into Mortia Academy, and also, of Tetsuya-sama's acceptance there as well of course." The King's eyes became filled with sadistic glee as he heard those words.

"Is that so…" The King said lowly. "Very good. Keep it up. The plan is almost complete. Soon, Tetsuya will no longer be able to escape."

"Very well, Your Majesty, I shall take my leave now." Once the King nodded, Marcuil left the way he came, the black abyss disappearing with him.

" **Dear, what were you two talking about? I heard the Commander's name."** The Queen asked, genuine curiousty in her eyes.

" **Nothing. Just about helping the boy to settle into Mortia. Besides, don't call me that. We're not in public anyway. "** The King replied, with no emotion towards the Queen present in his eyes.

" **I see…"** The Queen said, when the King stood up and left to his own quarters. Despite being 'married' the two had never shared a bed, and they shared no relationship whatsoever besides a professional one. The two never loved each other. The Queen herself couldn't even remember the reason they married each other. The Queen then replayed the conversation the butler just had with her 'husband' in her mind. Even thought they thought that she didn't understand what they were saying, she did actually, quite well too. Before, she had disregarded all of the King's schemes, but not this time. Because this time, it involved Tetsuya. She had tolerated her husband's use of the boy as a way to dispose of troublesome people, she had tolerated the poor boy being trained everyday harsher than anyone else because she thought it was good for him. But getting the young Commander involved in something for the man's own amusement? No. That was where she drew the line. She was tired of just sitting around and being a figurehead. This time, she would make a difference.

* * *

 **Hello everyone! Thanks for reading, and once again, I would like to tank everyone who supported me, reviewed, favorited, and followed. I really like where this is going, and I have a ton of ideas, but let me know what you guys think okay? Criticism is appreciated as well, so feel free to write whatever you want! Okay, I think that's it. Well, See you all later!**


	2. Chapter 2 For the Shadow

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 _ **A/N: Sorry for updating so late! I have decided that I will be updating every Saturday and Wednesday. I had a little trouble writing the character's direct POV since this is my first time, and I had a little trouble deciding how to go about writing the 'flow' of this chapter. Since I updated so late, I will be updating another chapter this week before Wednesday. Thank you for all the support for the first chapter! *^-^* And I also apologize once again for the late update. Thank you for taking your time to read this.**_

* * *

 _The Shadow's Duty_

 _..._

 _Chapter II: Exam or No Exam?_

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 ***~Outskirts of Shadow Kingdom, Takao Vacation Home, Day after the Party~***

The blazing sun was high in the sky, letting everyone in the Takao family's vacation home know that it was around noon. The everyday routine of servants shuffling around and duties being carried out was disrupted by the sound of a car rolling into the front of the house, which was signaled by the iron gates to the mansion opening. This caused the current occupants of the place, Momoi, Takao, and Mayuzumi to all go to the front doorstep, with Momoi acting extremely excited, waving at the black limo, Takao just smiling his normal goofy and good natured smile, while yelling 'Shin-chan!', most likely embarrasing the boy it was directed towards, Midorima Shinatarou, and Mayuzumi just reading a light novel while leaning on the pillar, abliet he was smiling a little bit. As the GOM and Chiaki exited the car, Momoi rushed towards the group and asked the question the newly returned group had been dreading.

"Everyone! Did you see Tetsu-kun?" Momoi looked at them all with hope and what could have possibly been sparkles in her light pink orbs. The GOM (except Akashi, who was in the back of the group,) all took a step back, leaving the explaining to Aomine, her childhood friend. Aomine, on the other hand, was internally cursing his 'friends' for sacrificing him to the she-devil in front of him. Momoi, seeing this, looked up at Aomine, awaiting the answer to her question. "Dai-chan?" She asked, after a good 30 seconds had passed with still no response to her inquiry about the group's meeting with her beloved Tetsu-kun.

"Y-You se-see here Sa-Satsuki, w-we didn't exactly...meet...Tetsu…" Aomine started off stuttering and eventually his voice turned into a whisper, barely audible, causing everyone to have to strain their ears in order to be able to hear everything the tanned boy said. After Aomine finished his statement, the aura surrounding Momoi became extremely dark and ominous.

" **Dai-chan…"**** Her voice held promises of torture and pain to the person that it was directed towards. In this case, Aomine, who visibly paled at his childhood friend's new tone. " **Why don't we discuss this somewhere else?"** She finished this phrase with a blindingly bright smile. One that anyone who didn't know her would have seen as one of the most dazzling and beautiful smiles in the world. However, the GOM knew better, hence their eternal gratitude that it was Aomine who was being sacrificed, however, another tiny _tiny_ part of them made a prayer for their friend returning in one piece. Once their previous manager and ace were out of sight, three members of the GOM all shared one thought: ' _Women in love are scary.'_

Throughout this whole ordeal, Akashi was lost in his thoughts of the happenings of the previous night. The red-headed teenager had so many unanswered questions, and was, in a way, completely clueless about the whole situation involving Kuroko. Normally, he knew everything. Thus, his thoughts eventually lead him to irritation, due to his own lack of knowledge. However, before his irritation could completely spike and reach its peak, Chiaki spoke.

"Everyone, I'm sure you've all had a long night, so please, do rest. A servant will come and call you all down once dinner has been prepared." Chiaki told them, gesturing towards the house, and then walking towards it herself. The four of them decided to take the raven-head up on her offer, and followed after her, but Akashi at first just stood there for a while, staring at a flower he was fascinated with, before Midorima called to him.

"Akashi? Are you coming?" The green haired boy asked, stopping to do so. Akashi snapped out of his daze, and then turned to reply to the awaiting boy.

"Yes, of course." The red-head replied calmly, as if he hadn't just been distracted by a flower in the garden. However, his response didn't seem to be directed towards the bespectacled teen in front of him, but rather, the self-proclaimed emperor seemed to have said the phrase as if he had just discovered the answer to a problem that had been bothering him for a while.

As he walked away, his shadow revealed the flower he was looking at. A strangely teal colored iris was standing in a field of flowers, waving in the wind.

* * *

 ***~Time Skip~***

The group had just finished dinner, in which Aomine and Kise had been fighting over food, with Murasakibara taking that chance to steal the two idiot's food, Takao silently laughing about it, and the rest, namely, Akashi, Midorima, Mayuzumi, Momoi, and Chiaki eating in silence with some of them in slight irritation at the foolishness of their fellow dining companions. Chiaki however, had left midway through dinner, as a servant had informed her that there was an urgent call that needed to be attended to right away. After dinner had been finished with still no sign of Chiaki's return. The group was then informed by some servants that Chiaki had said that they should do some exploring and relax, and that a meeting about what to do next will be conducted later. Hence, why there was now 8 people with nothing to do in the large mansion, with some wandering around, and others lost in their thoughts.

 **Akashi's POV**

I had decided to stay in my room so it would be easier find me when Chiaki's ready, since that's where the servants would search first, hence, I would be one of the first to be informed, and therefore, get there sooner. I want to hear the plan involving getting my Tetsuya back sooner rather than later after all. But first, who was that man from last night? Marcuil, was it? Not only did he bring us here, but he seems to know Tetsuya as well. Despite having figured out why Tetsuya's here, I still don't have enough of the pieces to fully convince Tetsuya that he can come back with us and have nothing to worry about. Not to mention, at my current level of influence and power, I have no way of challenging the person who is controlling Tetsuya, who is most likely the King, based on how Tetsuya had decided to leave last night after hearing the words 'His Majesty'. I need to find out what this this King-like person has on Tetsuya. Otherwise, Tetsuya will never come back to us. To _me._ How frustrating! Is this what is feels like to be on the losing side of a game? No...Akashi Seijuurou does _not_ lose. **(A/N: Akashi is still his normal self. I think that he just wouldn't want lose if Kuroko is involved...right?)** I _will_ win and get you back Tetsuya. Just you wait. And when I do, I'm never going to let you go.

 **Third Person POV**

Akashi himself didn't know it, but for a second, his left eye flashed golden, before returning to its original state. With that, Akashi continued to conjure up possible ideas of what the King could have had over his Tetsuya, until a servant finally came and informed him of Chiaki finishing her call with whomever it was she was talking to, and that everyone needs to come to the living room _immediately._ The news that Chiaki had to give was _very_ important. Akashi quickly headed downstairs, (well, fast enough to make it more efficient than walking, but not fast enough to make it look like he was in a rush) meeting up with the rest of the GOM, Momoi, Takao, and Mayuzumi along the way. Once everyone had arrived, Chiaki cleared her throat and began to speak.

"Everyone, I just received a call, as I'm sure you're all well aware. My father has informed me of the fact that I shall be attending Mortia Academy." After this statement, Takao gasped, while Mayuzumi just gained wide eyes. The rest, noticing this, decided to wait and leave the clarification to the three native inhabitants of Estrelía. Takao turned out to be the first to break the silence that had settled in the room after his sister's statement.

"Nee-sama...you don't have to go you know? Even if…" Takao gulped before saying his next words, as if they were difficult to get out. "father was the one who told you to." Chiaki only smiled at her little brother before responding.

"I know Kazu-kun, but that isn't the important thing here." Her eyes narrowed, before she decided to continue. "You see, Father believes that I'm 'interested', so to speak, in the Commander, who is also your friend, Lord Kuroko. Or as you all know him, Kuroko Tetsuya. Hence, he informed me that the Commander is also going to attend Mortia Academy, most likely in order to coax me into going." Chiaki paused to allow everyone in the room to fully absorb the information. She then continued her statement, ending with a question. "So, would any of you be willing to go to the school in order to meet your friend? Before any of you answer though, I will warn you all that this could take a long time, and you might not even be able to meet him even if you finish school there. Besides, there is no guarantee you would even be able to get in. Mortia Academy is one of the strictest schools in all of Estrelía. It is one for the elite of the elites. Therefore, please seriously consider how far you're willing to go to meet your friend before answering." At this point, Chiaki had given each and every one of them a stern look, implying just how serious this topic, and hence, their decision was. All of them didn't hesitate for even one second before turning towards Akashi with a fire in their eyes, even Midorima, who was usually not too honest about his feelings did so, each waiting for Akashi to approve of their decision, although they were sure he would and that if they had decided to back out that he would have forced them to go anyway, since it was Kuroko who was on the line here.

"Chiaki, I believe that all of us are willing to do anything to see Tetsuya again." Akashi was slightly smirking at Chiaki as he said this. He was proud and glad that his old teammates had made their decisions so quickly, even if he would never say it out loud.

"Very well. However, first, we must prepare you for the exam." Chiaki said, before turning towards Takao and Mayuzumi. "Kazu-kun, Mayuzumi, how ready do you think they all are for the exam?" Takao was once again, the one who spoke.

"Nee-sama, I'm sure you sense it as well, but you see, they...umm...don't even have _spirits_ yet, so they couldn't possibly get in...ah! No offense you guys, it's only natural that you don't have any, since you haven't made contracts yet and all, so don't freak out!" Takao ended is speech with a smile, trying to keep the teens from freaking out.

" _Spirits?_ " Akashi narrowed his eyes as he let the words roll off of his tongue.

"Yes, _spirits._ " Mayuzumi was the one to speak this time, drawing everyone's attention towards him. "They are basically beings that come from another world, that we contract with, giving us powers." As he said this, he brought out his own spirit, a 10 year old looking girl with knee length ocean blue colored hair, matching eyes, and pale skin wearing a plain white dress. The only thing that made her different from any normal girl was the fact that she was floating, and that she had large water bubbles around her. "This is my _spirit_ , Aoi. She is a high ranking water _spirit_." Most of the group stared at the young girl before them, dumbfounded. Mayuzumi, seeing their expressions, decided that a demonstration would be best. ' _Aoi, 'refresh' them, please.'_ Hearing his thoughts, Aoi manipulated the nearest water bubble and sent it towards the GOM and Momoi with the flick of her hand. The only one who managed to dodge on time was Akashi, while the rest ended up getting wet somehow, with the one who took most of the impact being Kise, as he was in front.

"Tsk." Mayuzumi muttered under his breath, as he was most likely looking forward to taking revenge on his basketball captain for all of the torturous training the red-head put him through by throughly soaking the young teenager. "Awake now?" Mayuzumi said, directing his statement towards the previously stunned GOM and Momoi. Kise was the first to complain.

"Mayuzumi-senpai! That was mean ssu~!" Kise had crocodile tears on his face and then went on to rant about how the 'attack' might have damaged his model face and so on.

"What the hell man?" Was basically what Aomine's response was, while Murasakibara just looked sadly at his now slightly wet chip bag, and Midorima only pushed up his glasses and murmured something about 'bad luck' and how 'I knew I shouldn't have left my lucky item in the room' etc.. All in all, the room was in chaos excluding the slightly amused Akashi standing at the sidelines, and the now sort of irritated Chiaki.

"Ehm.." Chiaki cleared her throat, causing everyone to turn towards her. Seeing that she now had everyone's attention, she began the speak again. " Now that you have all seen what a _spirit_ is, it's time to make make a contract with one. I suggest you all prepare, as I've heard that it's not the most...pleasant thing in the world." This caused some of the group to shiver, namely Kise and Momoi. Akashi however, focused more on the word 'heard' and decided to voice out a question.

"'Heard' Chiaki? Have you not gone through the process yourself?" ******* This caused the GOM and Momoi to look at her once again.

"No, you see, Kazu-kun, Mayuzumi, and I were all born with spirit contracts." Chiaki replied easily. Akashi sensed that she was hiding some details, but decided to let it slide in favor of the new information about the whereabouts of his Tetsuya.

"I see. Well then, as you have suggested this plan, I assume that you have an idea on how to conduct the process?" Akashi asked, slightly raising his eyebrow in the process, and earning a nod from Chiaki.

"But of course. In fact, I believe that we should do it now. After all the sooner, the better, correct?" Chiaki smiled as she headed towards the door, waiting for the rest to follow.

"Of course." Was the only phrase Akashi said before following after her, the rest trailing not too long afterwards.

* * *

 **Hello Everyone! Once again, I'm sorry for updating so late. T^T So, I will be updating Chapter 3 on Monday as a repayment for doing so. Thank you all for reading and all the support! See you all later!**

 ****Momoi is still speaking Japanese/English (whichever one you guys want to call it at this point) she's just very angry.**

 *****Even if Akashi knows that they are _Shadows,_ they don't know the extent of the differences, which include how _Shadows_ get into contracts.**


	3. Chapter 3 Tier Exam and A Rekindled Love

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 **I really don't know what to say guys. I have no excuse for not finishing my last few chapters. I just got really lazy, which then led to a loss of inspiration, which then led to a HUGE train of guilt crashing straight into me with each passing day. So...I worked on 5 chapters for the past three weeks to try and make it up to you. Hence, now why I am updating 2 chapters of those 5, and I will be updating the other three soon. Hopefully. Thank you for all of you guys who actually took the time to read this, and all the support you guys have been giving me. I'm really sorry for evertpything, and I hope you'll still read this story, even when I think it's kind of done for already though...**

* * *

 _The Shadow's Duty_

 _..._

 _Chapter III: Tier Exam and a Rekindled Love_

* * *

 ***~Mortia Academy~***

Kuroko had woken up from his 'nap' after 1 hour, and then had a meeting with the Mayuzumi family, including their daughter (who was unable to link the boy from the garden and Kuroko, as Kuroko had thoroughly disguised himself when he went to the garden before) to talk about the academy, just like the King said he would. Kuroko had thought about asking the three about the Rakuzan phantom, and their relationship with the ashen-head, but decided otherwise since the family themselves had yet to bring it up, so him saying something most likely would have just drawn suspicion and mistrust between himself and the 2nd Lord and his family. He had also slept peacefully that night, sleeping on all the information he had received that day. The next morning, or rather, this morning, Kuroko had been taken, along with Atsune, to the academy for their exam to, supposedly, determine their 'tier'. The exam wasn't supposed to be until 2 months from now, but their recommendation from the King made the school have to test them separately. The school themselves didn't know about the mission Kuroko was given, as the King believed that anyone could be the traitor, so the two of them were just passing themselves as two nobles going to school, with the extra support from the King, showing that they shouldn't be messed with. Hence, here Kuroko was, at the gates of Mortia Academy, along with Mayuzumi Atsune, whose nervousness could be seen in her grass-colored orbs, waiting for the person who was supposed to guide them to the exam site. All of a sudden, the gates opened, revealing a man who walked up to the two, confirmed their identities, and then asked them to follow him. As the duo was left trailing behind the man, Kuroko decided to recall the details about the school that he had learned the previous afternoon.

Apparently, the academy had a motto of " _Power is everything_ ", and the only way to get in was if one was from a powerful family, extremely powerful themselves, or sponsored by someone powerful. This led to the school becoming a 'Strength is Law' sort of place. As a result of this 'power' rule, the school had to create a system that managed to follow their ideology and still help keep everything orderly. The result of the school's efforts was a ranking system of sorts. At the bottom of the said ranking was _Bronze._ The _Bronze_ made up about 60%, and mainly consisted of _Kurians_ and the few _Zenians_ that managed to to get in. The next tier was _Silver_. This was said to to be the middle ground, and also turned out to be where most _spirit_ contractors ended up. It made up about 20% of the student population and consisted of mainly _Alciens_ and some _Shadows._ Next up were the _Golds._ The _Golds_ made up about 18% of the students. This division was made up of the rest of the _Shadows_ that didn't fall into the silver category, and a few exceptional (in their own race) _Alciens._ The final 2% were _Platinum_ tiered. The members of this tier were admired by everyone, and practically unbeatable by anyone outside of their own tier. Hence, they were considered a kind of ruling class. A student's tier was represented by the material their school emblem on their uniform was made out of. All of this lead to extreme tensions between students, and hence, divisions. By the time Kuroko had finished this thought, the three had arrived at a large steel door. Kuroko inspected the door closely, noticing the slight dents that it had, most of the dents seeming to be in a human-like shape. Kuroko then turned to the man who had taken the two of them here, who then punched in a 4 digit code, which Kuroko quickly memorized. The metal door made a large rumbling noise as it retreated to the ceiling, and revealed a large white room the size of a colosseum arena. Kuroko turned to look at Atsune, who was staring at the room wide-eyed. Her expression caused Kuroko's eyes to soften slightly. The girl looked like a child seeing the world for the first time. As Kuroko looked around, he noticed that the room was suspiciously devoid of any weapons or opponents.

" **Lord Tetsuya and Lady Atsune, we shall be testing your skills momentarily. Please put these on."** The man handed them a crystal clear school emblem. " **This emblem will change color once the testing has finished. We will come back for you two shortly. Good luck."** The man then bowed towards the two in respect, and before the two could ask any questions, closed the metal door on them. Once the door was closed, a rumbling sound was heard, shaking the ground. Kuroko had already called out Selutria, and was just waiting for his opponents to appear. Selutria's white and wavy waist length hair was adorned with an ice crystal butterfly headband, complementing her ice cold blue orbs. She was wearing a casual knee length white dress, with the bottom of the dress melding into a blue the same color of her eyes, and the top of the dress was made up of fur, exposing the snow colored skin at her collarbone and the top of her arms. Atsune had managed to summon her _spirit_ as well, a 12 year old looking boy, who had on a newspaper boy outfit, and had tussled green hair, along with bored looking brown eyes. The young boy then addressed Atsune.

" **Oi, Atsune. What do you need?"** He boy stared at Atsune, awaiting a reply.

" **Tiroth, I need your help fighting off some opponents, so...will you please help me? I'll make it up to you later, I promise. Plus,"** she whispered the next part, " **I want to impress Lord Tetsuya."** Then, she spoke aloud once more. " **So...please?"** The earth spirit now know as Tiroth just sighed, and looked into Atsune's eyes. After a few strained seconds, the _spirit_ finally answered.

 **Tiroth's POV (Kinda)**

" **Fine. But first, I would like to know who I'm working with."** As he said this, Tiroth began to look around, before his eyes finally landed on the frost surrounded pair. Less than a second after he saw them, the eyes of the male out of the two stared straight back at him. The second their eyes met, Tiroth felt a chill that went from his eyes, and straight into his very soul. His whole body was screaming 'danger', despite his real body being in the spirit realm, like all other spirits, allowing them to remain unaffected by any injuries one may receive while in Estrelía. And yet...the boy in front of Tiroth was so terrifying that even Tiroth's real body was quaking in fear, and felt as if it would be ripped apart if Tiroth's current form went any closer.

" **Oh! If it isn't Tiroth of the Earth Spirits!"** A voice exclaimed behind him. Tiroth whipped around as the voice registered in his memory. Even if it had been hundreds of years, he would never forget it. The way it rang through the air like bells on Christmas morning, how it sounded as soft as the winter snow, and most of all, he would never forget how much he loved its owner.

" **Selutria…"** was the only thing that Tiroth had managed to say, lost in shock.

" **Oh good, it really is you! I never knew you would get contracted to somebody! I thought you were more of a loner person…"** Selutria's expression turned into one of deep thought, before a smile quickly made its way to her face, and she began speaking again. " **But it's a good thing that you have someone to talk to now. I was worried about you, since you were always alone…"** ' _She was...worried about me..?'_ Tiroth blushed as he processed the Ice Queen's words. " **Tiroth, are you alright? Should I lower your body temperature for you?"** Selutria asked innocently, blissfully unaware of the storm of emotions she had just stirred up in the earth _spirit._ Before the conversation could continue however, the ground rumbled once again, and the boy that Selutria was apparently contracted to called her.

 **Third Person POV**

The second tremor was apparently due to the wall splitting into two, revealing a giant-like creature with 4 arms, each seeming to control one of the four main elements. Kuroko was the first one to react. Before anyone realized it, he had disappeared from his spot, and had somehow made his way onto the giant's right shoulder. All of a sudden, the giant let out a roar that sounded suspiciously like a cry of pain. Then, two loud thuds echoed throughout the room. This caused Atsune, who was previously in a daze, to turn her head towards the noise. There, on the ground, lay two of the giant's arms. Atsune then turned to look at Kuroko in awe. Kuroko himself however was surprised at her reaction towards him. He was used to seeing people cower in fear whenever he used his powers. But this girl was different. Kuroko let out a small smile then. ' _I guess she really is a good person after all.'_

* * *

 ***~Time Skip~***

The test had finally ended. Kuroko had accidentally killed the giant, which had been used for the past 10 years as the examinee's opponent. Oops. However, because that feat was considered impossible, since no one, since the school's founding had done so, it was no surprise when Kuroko's emblem had gone from crystal clear to a solid platinum. Atsune had also done well, and had left the school with a pure gold emblem residing in her pocket. The school had given them their schedules and their classrooms. Apparently your tier influences your lifestyle in the school as well as your homeroom. Kuroko would end up in a small but elite class full of _Platinums,_ and Atsune would end up in one of the classes made up of solely _Golds_. Kuroko internally sighed at this news. This meant that the mission would be harder, since they would have to find each other during school, being in different tiers and all. As Kuroko watched the sunset, all he could do was just hope that the mission would go smoothly, and then he could finally go and visit Earth.

* * *

 **Thanks for reading everyone! The next chapter is longer than this one, which was kinda more like an information block than a real chapter, but, it was necessary for the story to get moving, so...I had to do it. I'm sorry. T^T I hope the next chapter will be to your tastes more if you weren't satisfied with this one! Once again thank you for putting up with my absence, (if you actually are. But you also have the right to be super angry at me, so I won't have anything against you if you're really angry at me like now.)**


	4. Chapter 4 Contracted Spirits & Exam Prep

_._

 _The Shadow's Duty_

 _..._

 _Chapter IV: Contracted Spirits and Exam Prep_

* * *

 ***~Takao Vacation Home, Contract Room~***

The room was full of contract circles, each matching a person in the room's hair color. In the middle of each circle, also floated a _spirit_. On the sidelines, three people were staring, dumbfounded at the results of the 6 others in the room.

"...*Pant*...So…*Pant*...h-how...did…*Pant*...we do...Chiakicchi…?" Asked the group's resident 'puppy'.

"You...how did...this shouldn't be possible...I mean, one or two of you, if you're lucky...but all of you? There's just no way…" Chiaki continued to ramble on in her own world, causing Takao and Mayuzumi to have to speak up for her. Takao cleared his throat to gain everyone's attention before speaking.

"Ehem…" Once he was sure he had gotten everyone's attention, he began again. "In place of my Nee-sama, I shall inform you all of everything. First off, you all did very well, better than we expected even, hence my sister's current state of confusion." Before Takao could continue however, Akashi interrupted.

"But Kazunari, even then, that shouldn't be enough to cause this much confusion, correct?" Akashi looked over towards the worn-out looking Chiaki. Despite it not being said, everyone knew the general idea of the unasked question that Akashi had hidden in his words. ' _What's the real reason behind her current state?'_

"As perceptive as ever Akashi-san. I really can't hide anything from you huh?" Takao gave a wry smile as he said this. Then, his expression turned serious, and he faced the rest of the group. "Okay, the reason why Nee-sama is like this is because all of your _spirits_ are very high ranking. Normally, only nobles are able to summon such _spirits_ , but not only are you guys nobles, but you guys aren't even part _Shadow_. Therefore, it should be impossible for you guys to summon such _spirits_. However, you just proved all three of us wrong. What's worse though is that what you have all just done, is essentially, tip the balance of power. If word of this gets to the King, there's no telling what he would do you guys. You're all anomalies. You've done the _impossible._ " Takao then closed his eyes and turned his head towards Akashi, reopened his eyes, and then questioned Akashi. "Is that enough information, Akashi-san?" Akashi smiled before answering.

"Yes. Thank you for your cooperation, Kazunari." The red-head smiled a little too sweetly, sending chills down everyone's spines.

"Takao-kun, I shall take it from here." Mayuzumi said, putting a hand on Takao's shoulder. Then, Mayuzumi looked up at everyone else's opinion of Takao and Mayuzumi then switched places, with Takao now leaning against the wall, and Mayuzumi sporting a more serious and lively expression than usual, if that was even possible for the dead-looking phantom man of Rakuzan. All of a sudden, Mayuzumi snapped his fingers, and Aoi appeared out of seemingly nowhere. Aoi then suddenly introduced herself in another language. At least that's what everyone thought most likely happened, since next, everyone's own spirits said something back to her, and eventually, the spirits were immersed in conversation, ignoring the dumbfounded and/or curious occupants of the room. The whole situation went something like this:

 **Spirits POV:**

"Hello, my name is Aoi, of the Water Spirits." Aoi slightly inclined her heads towards them as she said this. All of a sudden, the blonde (male) and pink (female) haired _spirits_ of the group bounded towards her, acting like a mini versions of their contractors, Kise and Momoi, respectively.

"Hello! I'm Kinu, of the Lightning Spirits! It's nice to finally meet another humanoid spirit, Aoi!" The blonde _spirit_ said, starting the conversation off. How Kinu was so excited was something that Aoi couldn't understand, but she just nodded her head in confirmation anyway, wanting to have as friendly of a relationship with her fellow spirits as possible. "And I'm Minu, Kinu twin, and of the Lightning Spirits as well! Let's get along as fellow females of the group, alright?" Minu had a smile on as she said this, earning a smile from Aoi as well, who appreciated having another female in the small group of 7. The next one to move was the red-head of the _spirits_ , whom all the other spirits watched carefully, as that one seemed to be the highest ranked among them, so, whatever he did would severely influence how the rest acted. Once the red-head was an arms length away from Aoi, he extended his hands towards her, and smiled.

"Aoi, is it? I am Rai, Prince of the Inferno Spirits. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance." None were really surprised when he said this, as every time a new member to any _spirits_ royal family was added, those _spirits_ made sure everyone knew about it. And with all of them being among the upper echelons of their respective _spirit_ societies, they were all among the first to know of the newly crowned Inferno _spirits_ prince. The question however, was why the _spirit_ prince would go into a contract, not to mention so early into his new position as official heir, when most royals never even went into contracts at all. Aoi grasped the young _spirit_ prince's hand and turned to the 13 year old looking purple-haired male _spirit_ walking up towards her.

"Hello, Aoi." The _spirit_ said slightly lazily. "I am known as Kumai, of the Dark Spirits. Do you have any snacks?~" As Kumai said this, she held out her hand to Aoi, who replied with a solid 'no'. Kumai then pouted and walked away, slightly sulking, before the last two spirits came forward. The first one to speak was Midorima's contracted spirit.

"I am Tanji, of the Earth Spirits. I'm not going to become friends with any of you, it's just that it might be good to know some fellow humanoid spirits. Just for future reference! That's all! So don't go getting the wrong idea or anything..." The male with forest-green colored hair said.

"Oi! Aoi! I don't really care who these guys are, but all I got to know is if any of them can give me a decent fight. But...I guess I could at least grace all of you weaklings with my title. I'm Hyou, of the Water Spirits." A navy-blue haired _spirit_ said, directing the last part to the other 4 spirits. ' _Really, these spirits were far too similar to their contractors.'_ Aoi internally sighed. ' _What's worse, I can't believe that someone was actually able to contract with Hyou of all people...his contractor must have quite the ego to be able to tolerate Hyou…'_

"Everyone, if it isn't too much trouble, I would like to ask all of you something." All heads turned towards Aoi at the statement, making the blue-haired water spirit the center of attention. Aoi took a deep breath before continuing.

"All of your contractors, as well as my own, are curious as to why you decided to contract with them." There was a sudden and high tension silence in the air as Aoi waited for the group of powerful _spirits_ to speak.

"I'm afraid I don't have an answer to that question. All I know is that when I felt someone summoning for _spirits_ , I felt drawn towards it. When I made the contract, it felt...right so to speak. Nothing else. I assume it was the same for the rest of you correct?" Rai had dissipated the tension in the air with his words, and the rest nodded in unison at his question. Aoi on the other hand, stood their slightly dumbfounded. After all, there hadn't ever been a contract where a spirit just felt it was the...right thing. Most of the time it was only because the contractor and _spirit_ were decently comfortable with each other, and the _spirit_ deemed the reason for summoning a valid one. These 6 cases were very strange…

"Thank you everyone. My contractor is asking for me, so I'm afraid I'll have to cut our conversation short. Besides, I believe that your contractors are all quite confused as well." Aoi looked at the colorful group of six as she said this, effectively diverting the attention of the _spirits_ away from each other, and towards their respective contractors. The _spirits_ then each went to greet their own contractors in _Estrelían_ , with some getting along extremely well due to their similar personalities, and others seeming to have conversations that sent sparks flying due to their far too similar thought processes and ideas.

Aoi in the meantime, just went back to the _spirit_ realm after quickly reporting what she found out to her contractor telepathically.

* * *

 ***~Time Skip~***

 **Third Person POV:**

It had been about 2 weeks since the GOM and Momoi had first summoned their _spirits_ during that period of time, they had been training with Mayuzumi, Takao, and Chiaki to help pass the exam. The group surprised the three once again with their incredible compatibility with their respective _spirits_ and how well they became able to control their powers in such a short period of time. Honestly, it scared the three quite a bit. After all, if the group of six were this powerful now, how powerful would they be once they get official training at the academy? After all, based on their current strength, Chiaki and the other two were certain that the group would pass.

"Alright everyone. We're ending training early today. We have the entrance exam tomorrow after all, and we don't want any of you failing because of fatigue. So, go to sleep early tonight." Chiaki said, dismissing them allndll after a sweaty day of training since dawn, while it was now sunset.

"Ah~ that was painful ssu~. Now I'm all sweaty and smelly!" Kise whined, crocodile tears at the edge of his eyes.

"Shut up Kise! We do basketball training, so how is this any different?" Aomine said, irritated by the blondes antics, and having to deal with Hyou's ego for the past few weeks, and possibly, for the rest of his stay in this world utility they got Kuroko back.

"Ki-chin. You're annoying." Was all Murasakibara was willing to say after their long and tiring lessons.

"You guys are all so mean ssu~! If Kuro-"

"Ryouta" Kise was cut off by a menacing Akashi.

"Ah...I'm sorry Akashicchi...I...didn't mean to…" Kise looked apologetic, and very similar to a puppy who had lost his master, which, actually, wasn't really too off of the mark. Kuroko had been his instructor in basketball after all.

"Just don't do it again, Ryouta." With that, Akashi walked away, his shoes clacking on the marbled floor of the ivy covered walled mansion. Everyone stared after their leader, knowing that he had been affected the most. After all, one would have to be extremely dense to not see that the red-head had a crush on the phantom.

That night, all of the group fell into an uneasy sleep, each worried about their old captain and phantom.

* * *

 ***~The Next Day, Mortia Academy Entrance~***

The entrance was devoid of people, with only the GOM, Momoi, and Chiaki awaiting at the entrance. Chiaki first showed the guards her gold emblem, symbolizing her rank, as well as the fact that she was a student of the school. The man nodded, not even looking at the extra six people she had brought with her, with the group giving her questioning looks for the guard's behavior. Once they were out of earshot, Chiaki spoke up.

"Have you guys learned the motto of the school yet?" The group stayed silent, until Akashi spoke up for them.

"I believe it was something along the line of ' _Power is Everything'_ was it not?" Akashi slightly frowned at the last part, and the rest of the group slightly shivered as they heard the school's motto. After all, a very similar motto had caused their downfall, and the loss of a very important and precious friend. The very friend that they were now here to find.

"Yes, that's correct. The instructor will explain everything to you, so don't panic." Chiaki sighed, before looking at all of them sternly. "Don't make all of your training for nothing." She then turned around, and politely greeted a man who was walking towards the group, and once all of their identities were confirmed, the group bidded farewell to Chiaki, who returned it, and headed to her class, as school had started two weeks ago, but she had taken time off to train them, and made up excuses for her father every day to make sure the man wasn't suspicious of her absence.

"Ehem." The man in front of them cleared his throat to get attention. "Alright, late entries, get ready. If you fail this exam, you shall not be accepted. To pass the exam, you must change the color of this crystal emblem into one of the following: _Bronze, Silver..._ or _Gold._ " The man seemed to hesitate before saying the last part, as if there was something else he had wanted to include in the list, but decided not to. However, before any of them could call the man out on it, the man had thrusted crystal clear emblems into each of their hands, opened the door, shoved them in, and closed it before any of them could even react. All of a sudden, there were two tremors, and the wall opened, revealing what appeared to be a baby giant. The baby giant looked enraged, as if it had been deprived from a revenge. In the darkness behind the giant, if one squinted closely enough, one could see the outline of a far larger, adult giant with two of its four arms missing. The group however, were far too focused on the current threat to notice the larger outline behind the said baby giant. And so, began their exam.

* * *

 **Hello everyone! I hope you guys liked this chapter more! I was stuck on this one for a long time, trying to figure out the names. I'm pretty sure I rewrote them at least 5 times...oh well, ar least this is done. I'm sorry that I didn't write the GOM's and Momoi's exam scene. I just couldn't. If you can't tell by now, then I should just let you all know that I suck at writing action scenes, which is pretty weird since I decided to write a story like this, but I'll try! But also try to avoid as many as possible. Except when showcasing Kuroko's power. Because that needs anaction scene to be known. Okay, next chapter will be Kuroko's life at school. Yay! Hopefully I'll finish within the next few days or so. Until next time guys! Once again, I'm sorry for my absence and negligence. I think summer just makes me super lazy. Thanks for reading! See you all later!**


	5. Chapter 5 The Shadow's Typical Day

**Hello everyone! I haven't updated for a while, since, well, I've been having trouble writing this story. I'm sorry about that guys! But, okay, let's move on. I forgot to add the _descriptions_ of the _spirits_ last time! Thank you spirithealerstar1122 for pointing that out to me! I couldn't really think of anything too original, so, here they are:**

 **Oh yeah, just for future reference, all _spirits_ look like 12 year olds until they go into their battle form, where they turn into about 16 year olds.**

 _ **Rai, Prince of the Inferno Spirits: scarlet hair, and orange eyes, usually wears a formal black business suit most of the time, with a red shirt and black tie. (Basically a mini Bokushi)**_

 _ **Tanji of the Earth Spirits: Tiroth's twin brother, but with Midorima colored hair, and matching eyes, usually wears the same thing as his brother, the newspaper boy outfit, which is the traditional boy spirit outfit, which also changed the color of the shirt into ones hair when in battle mode.**_

 _ **Kumai of the Dark Spirits: waist length light purple hair, matching eyes, and wearing the same outfit as Aoi's, which is also the traditional girl spirit outfit, and has the same properties as its male counterpart.**_

 _ **Hyou of the Water Spirits: Toussled dark blue hair, matching eyes, tanned skin, and wears traditional spirit boy outfit.**_

 _ **Kinu of the Lightning Spirits: electric yellow hair, matching eyes, and wearing the traditional spirit boy outfit.**_

 ** _Minu of the Lightning Spirits: short light pink hair, with matching eyes, and traditional girl spirit outfit._**

 **Sorry about the unoriginality guys. I just couldn't think of anything. And if you didn't get what was just said up there, then basically, all of the spirits look like mini versions of their contractors, excluding Akashi's, which looks like Bokushi, and Murasakibara's, which is kind of like his female twin.**

 **Okay, now, onto the story!**

* * *

 _The Shadow's Duty_

 _..._

 _Chapter V: The Shadow's Typical Day_

* * *

 ***~Mortia Academy Platinum Dorms, 7:30 A.M.~***

Kuroko got up and began getting ready for the day, putting on his uniform last, the Platinum shaded emblem pinned to the fabric atop where his heart resides. The uniform was eerily similar to his Teiko uniform. Even the color was the same! Well, the shirt color was a platinum instead of a baby blue, but it was about the same. And the pants were white instead of black so...it wasn't really the same...but overall, everything else looked the same. Excluding the emblem of course. For the past few weeks, Kuroko's life had been hectic. All of the students at the academy had heard of the 'new _Platinum_ student' as well as him being the 'Last Kuroko'. Unfortunately, his low presence didn't work on his fellow Shadows, who were adamant on pursuing him to the ends of the world it seemed. Luckily though, no one knew his status as the Commander of the Royal Army, since Kuroko had never shown his face unless necessary really, and the only ones who knew his face and occupation were members of the 10 Lord Families. And even then, mainly only the heads of these prestigious families knew him, with the few exceptions of some of the heads' children. Kuroko internally sighed as he prepared to go to school for the day, knowing that he would once again be the center of attention.

As Kuroko roamed the halls people were constantly whispering, some even daring to take a glance at him for a few seconds. Kuroko could get the gist of their conversation due to his 'better-than-even-normal-Shadows' senses.

 _ **"Is that him?"** One girl whispered._

 _ **"Of course it is! Look at his emblem! Plus, isn't he handsome?"** The other girl said, as both averted their eyes from each other for a few moments to look at his emblem color. **"But I heard he's already taken. And by a Gold no less."** The second girl said._

 _ **"What? Really? Well then, I guess we'll just have to give up…"** *Sigh* Then, the girls walked away. As they did so, he caught a flash of their emblem color in the sun. Both were apparently of the Silver tier, which meant they couldn't challenge a Gold. Much less the highest ranking Gold, his fiancé, Mayuzumi Atsune_.

These type of conversations died down once Kuroko reached his classroom, which only had 8 other students, with only 5 currently present. The _Platinum_ classroom was far away from all the other ones, hence why there was almost nobody around. Anyone found near a classroom of higher tier than their own, he/she would get detention, unless they were there for a duel, or had some other plausible reason to be near people far more powerful than themselves. Of course, this rule didn't apply the other way. If someone of higher tier was found near a classroom of lower tier, or even bullying someone of lower tier, nobody would say a word. If someone of a lower tier though, so much as even made the upper tier person think he/she was insulted by the lower tier person, the person of lower tier might just get expelled. All in all, the powerful ruled in the school. So, nothing out of the ordinary.

Kuroko walked in, effectively gaining the attention of the other 5 in the room. All of them greeted him politely, and he returned it in kind. The only people missing now we're the top 3 in the school. These three tended to be late, but since they were the most powerful, hands down, now one would stand up to them. Excluding Kuroko of course, who could definitely beat them, but had been too busy with his investigation for the past few weeks that he couldn't be bothered with the trio. Then, the door to the classroom opened, revealing the three. The leader of the pack, with dirty blonde hair reaching to his shoulders and mud colored eyes, surveyed the room until his eyes landed on the teal head. He walked over to Kuroko, who was reading a book, and slammed his hand on his desk.

 **"You, Tetsuya right?"** The boy asked, a serious and challenging expression on his face. Kuroko slowly lifted his eyes from the book, and stared straight at the person who had disrupted his peaceful 'research' time. Kuroko 's ice cold stare had unnerved the boy in front of him greatly, causing a slight flinch. Kuroko resisted the urge to smirk himself as the boy before him's expression became one of fear for a few seconds, before a fire was lit in the boy's eyes,

 **"Good morning, Aaron, I didn't see you there."** There were two distinct giggles behind the boy now know was Aaron, number one in the whole school in terms of power. For now at least.

 **"Oi, Lapis, Leon, stop laughing!"** Aaron exclaimed, slightly embarrassed. Kuroko turned to look at the purple haired twins behind Aaron, who were holding their stomachs and trying to muffle their laughs, succeeding only slightly as Kuroko could still hear them very well. Kuroko observed that their hair colors were far lighter than Murasakibara's, putting them somewhere around light purple, unlike Murasakibara's solid violet. After concluding his thoughts Kuroko immediately mentally slapped himself. _'Don't think about them Tetsuya! Get yourself together!'._ Kuroko was shoved from his thoughts by a slightly raging Aaron. _'Whoops. Did I ignore him for too long?'_

 **"Tetsuya."** Aaron's tone sounded serious, so Kuroko decided to pay attention to the boy. **"Duel with me."** The room became dead silent after that. No one was moving but everyone was listening. Even the other platinum students were. They wanted themselves to see how strong the new kid was. After all, the rumor about him killing the giant during his exam was everywhere. It was like this until Kuroko finally gave his reply.

 **"No."** His answer was met with pin drop silence, before it was interrupted by the man who had challenged him himself.

 **"WHAT! Why?! There's no reason for you not to accept! We're going to fight each other at the tournament anyway, so what reason could you possibly have to refuse?!"** Aaron looked confused while angry at the same time.

Ah, the tournament. The game every year at Mortia Academy where groups of six would compete with other groups within their respective tiers, and then, the winning groups would choose a representative, who would then challenge one member of the higher tier in a chance to get his/her group spots in the higher tier. This tournament is in a way, a second entrance exam. It confirms if you really should belong to the tier you're in, as the group that gets the least amount of wins in each respective tier gets demoted. This is how the tournament works for the _Gold_ , _Silver_ , and _Bronze_ tiers. For the _Platinum_ tier, the students battle against each other by themselves to determine their ranking. Then, the representative from the winning _Gold_ team gets to challenge a _Platinum_ for his/her spot, but his/her teammates will not become _Platinums_ if he/she wins. Only the representative will. This tends to cause...problems among the winning _Gold_ team.

 **"Exactly. We're going to be fighting at the tournament anyway, so there's no reason to fight now."** Kuroko pointed out, before standing up and leaving the room, despite the fact that class was just about to start. He had already learned all of this years ago, since he had gone to school here before, albeit, under a different name. He decided to head to the roof, where there would be no disturbances. At least, that was the plan, until he felt something in his pocket vibrate. He took out the small crystal ball, and opened it to answer.

 ** _"Tetsuya."_ ** Said a deep voice in the miniature globe full of mist.

 **"Your Majesty."** Kuroko replied in his infamous monotone. **"To what do I owe this pleasure?"** Kuroko felt like getting a little sarcastic today. He just had to deal with an overexcited child after all.

 _ **"Tetsuya, How have you been?"** _ Kuroko knew what the man was actually trying to say: ' _How much progress have you made?'_

 **"I have been doing fine. My classmates are interesting enough."** Which translated to: ' _Progress has been slow. My classmates are getting in the way.'_

 ** _"I see. It's good that you are getting along with the others. Do you want to have them come over to the castle sometime?"_** This meant: _'Why are you wasting time?! Do I need to pick someone else for this mission, Commander?'_

 **"No, it's quite alright. There is no need for such things. I'm afraid I must go now, it was pleasant speaking with you your Majesty."** Which also meant: ' _There is no need. I am perfectly capable of doing this mission. Good day, Your Majesty.'_

 _ **"...Very well. It was pleasant speaking with you as well, Tetsuya. Come visit the castle soon."**_ Which translated to: ' _Fine. You may stay on this mission. However, do speed up your process. Or else you will be returning to the castle. Whether you like it or not. **Commander**.'_

Then the mist inside the globe disappeared, leaving only a seemingly large clear marble in Kuroko's hands. Kuroko laid down on the roof, staring up at the clear blue sky. Kuroko was feeling tired from all of his snooping around for the past few weeks, causing him to fall into a deep slumber.

* * *

 ***~Time Skip~***

Kuroko had awoken to the view of a starlit sky. He quickly gathered that classes had finished already, and that he should head back soon, unless he wanted to be punished for missing curfew. ' _Although_ ,' he thought, _'since I released one of my seals, I could probably just slip past everybody without anyone noticing if I put in a little energy.'_ But Kuroko soon dismissed the thought since he didn't like breaking the rules and was also far too tired to want to use even a bit of the energy he had just restored from sleeping. So, he decided to just get there as fast as he could, and accept any punishment he might get for being late.

* * *

 ***~Time Skip~***

When Kuroko opened up the door to the _Platinum_ dorms, there was no one there to reprimand him, so he decided to risk looking at the clock on the wall. It read 8:55. Phew. Just 5 minutes off. With that, Kuroko stealthily and quietly raced up to his bedroom, opened the door and closed it, without making a single sound, as was expected of the Commander of a bunch of overpowered _Shadows_. Kuroko was still far too tired to think about changing, so he just plopped onto his plush and oversized silk blanket covered bed, and managed to get back into the sleeping realm.

* * *

 **Hi guys! I hope this chapter was okay. I've been having difficulties trying to write this story, so the last few chapters have been very choppy. Maybe I'll go back and edit them someday, but I don't think that's going to be anytime soon, so I'm sorry. T^T Thanks to all of you who have reviewed and favorited and followed, and are still reading my story. I hope that I will be able to get out of this writing slump soon. See you all later!**


	6. Chapter 6 The Meeting of the Rivals

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 ** _IMPORTANT READ PLEASE!_**

 ** _Hello everyone, sorry for being gone for so long. I didn't know how to write this chapter and got kinda lazy while doing it, so yeah. Also, to let you know, I will now be working more on 'The Phantom Heir'. This one will still be updated, but just not as often with school and all in the way of my writing. Oh yeah, I realized in this chapter that last chapter I should have called Kuroko 'Tetsuya', so I fixed that and bolded all the conversation in the last chapter since it was in Estrelían._**

 ** _Thanks for all the reviews, favorites and follows as always! You silent readers are also appreciated just as much, so don't feel too pushed to review or anything! (Although reviewing would also be greatly appreciated)_**

 ** _Thanks for all reviews you guys! I'm glad you guys like it!_**

 ** _RinFantasy, I'm glad you review for every chapter, and youactually guessed what I had wanted to write for this chapter corrrectly, so I hope you like the way I formatted it!_**

 ** _BabyNightmareLady, thank you for always writing reviews. It's really nice to know that someone likes your work, no matter how small or simple the review is._**

 ** _julie2709, I used Google translate to translate what you wrote, and I'm sorry if I got it wrong, but thank you for liking my story! I'm glad that you're okay with the fact that I didn't write how the GOM's exam went!_**

 _ **kaosmagic, I hope this chapter satisfies you! Thanks for reminding me and getting me determined to finish this chapter today!**_

 _ **For everyone else, I'm sorry that I can't respond to you since I don't really know how to respond to comments that were made a few chapters ago, but I still am extremely grateful for you guys letting me know what you think. I hope you guys all enjoy this chapter!**_

* * *

 _The Shadow's Duty_

 _..._

 _Chapter VI: The Meeting of the Rivals_

* * *

 ***~Takao Family Car~***

A group of seven were sitting inside, the majority of them fidgeting with something as they all waited for the car to arrive at its destination. All of them were wearing the traditional school uniform, with their shirts matching the color of their emblems. This tended to make the _Gold_ ranked tier look...not so appealing in their school uniform, which was white excluding the shirt. Oh well. Two out of the seven had emblems shining a blazing gold, with the rest of them all at the level of sterling silver. All of a sudden the vehicle came to a stop, signifying the end of their trip, and therefore, arrival at their destination. Chiaki was the one to exit first, and outside, there was almost nobody. This confused the other six, who turned towards Chiaki for answers. Chiaki, noticing the group's confusion, decided to enlighten them.

"Our fellow students are all probably busy gawking at the _Platinums_." The group was confused. During the entrance exam, they hadn't been told about _Platinums._ They had been told that the rankings were in order, from lowest to highest, _Bronze, Silver,_ and _Gold. "_ Oh, did they not tell you guys about the _Platinums?"_ The silence that came afterwards was all Chiaki needed to know to confirm her suspicions. Before she could speak however, Akashi seemed to have made a conclusion.

" _Platinums_ are the highest ranking group in this school, correct?" The rest of the GOM, Momoi and Chiaki turned to Akashi as he said this.

"You are correct, Akashi. They are the tier above us, but, as rarely anyone ever gets in, the instructors tend not to mention it unless the candidate is part of the Lord Families or is recommended by a member of the Royal Family." The group nodded in understanding, besides Akashi, who had already concluded that in his previous thought. "Oh, here they come now. It's best you memorize these faces. They are the elite of the elite. The _Platinums._ " As Chiaki said this, a group of about 7 students could be seen exiting the halls of a dormitory, with the three in the front seeming to be the most social and interactive ones.

 **" _Kyaa! Lord Aaron! Marry me!"_**

 **" _Sir Leon, let me bear your children!"_**

 **" _Dame* Lapis! I love you! Will you please go out with me?!"_**

Statements similar to these we're all directed at the three in the front, who were waving amicably at their respective fans. Then, all of a sudden, the content of the screams and yells changed with the appearance of two people

 **" _Oh my gosh! It's them! They look so perfect together!" one whispered._**

 **" _Kyaa! Perfection coming through!" another screamed._**

 **"** _ **Lord Tetsuya!** Lady Atsune! We're rooting for you! Congratulations on your engagement !"** another fan let their thoughts become known._

The word 'Tetsuya' froze the group. All of the GOM turned to the crowd to confirm their lingering suspicions. After all, they had only known one person with that name. Aomine and Kise immediately dashed towards the (possibly violent) crowd of fans, with Kise obviously getting to the front first due to his many years of experience having to get through them, being a model and all. When Kise arrived to the front, what he saw stunned him.

There he was, teal hair slicked back, posture perfect, and his face as monotonous and expressionless as ever. But the thing that really stunned the blond was what his friend's arm was linked to, and the fact that he was acting like it was nothing strange for the ashen-colored hair woman to do so. Kise would admit, that yes, the woman was better looking than the average woman, but to think that she actually had the nerve to _touch_ Akashi's crush of all people's crushes...she was _sooo_ dead. However, Kise, being the decent person he is, decided that he wouldn't better than average looking for her age, but for her to be able to do THAT and not get any negative response from the teal-head meant that she was someone special to him. And based on what the people around him were saying, these two were an…'item'. Oh no. This was bad. This was REALLY BAD. If their esteemed former captain were to see this, it would break the red-head's heart. Even if their former captain appeared strong and resilient, on the inside every one of them knew how mentally fragile he was, as evidence by his counterpart taking over for the past 2 years of his life or so. Kise knew at that moment that he just couldn't let his friend see this scene.

And so, before Aomine could make it to the front of the crowd, Kise fought his way back out, and along the way, found a struggling Aomine, and dragged the tanned boy back out. Both made their way back to the group looking half-dead.

"Dam*it Kise, how do you deal with those kind of bit*hes and as*holes everyday! Geez! That was crazy! I didn't even make it far enough to see Tetsu!" Aomine complained, before getting hit by Momoi with a paper fan.

"Dai-chan! Language!" The pink-haired woman scolded.

"Tch. Whatever." Aomine nonchalantly shrugged off his childhood friend's comment, seeing as she had said it so many times already.

"Ryouta, did you manage to get to the front?" Akashi asked, impatient for an answer to his question.

"Yes, Akashicchi, but it wasn't Kurokocchi." Kise said this sheepishly while inwardly hoping that no one had caught onto the fact that he was lying, especially the person he was most trying to keep away from that crowd right now.

Fortunately, no one had caught on, even Akashi, on Kise's lie. Kise silently breathed a sigh of relief.

"Alright then, let's get going everyone. We need to find you classroom before the school bell rings." Chiaki clapped her hands together as she said this, successfully gaining the group's attention. Once she was sure all the members of the group were on the same page, she beckoned them to follow her into the main building, which was at the center of the campus. Once the whole group entered the building, the first thing they were greeted with was a large marble two-layered fountain. Then, Chiaki began to move, the group following towards the lobby desk. " **Excuse me."** The _Estrelían_ tongue rolled off of Chiaki's lips with ease, making the woman at the desk look towards her.

" **Yes, dear?"** The woman seemed to be somewhere in her forties, in human terms, and judging from her external features, she looked human enough, but, _Shadows_ looked just like humans too, so, who knows….

" **My bodyguards here,"** Chiaki gestured towards the rest of the group, " **are transferring in right now. They were training in the Blossom Mountains for a few weeks, so they couldn't come until now."** Most of the group was thinking, ' _Such lies!'_

" **Oh, I see. Well then, their names milady?"** The group found it strange that they were skin Chiaki for their names, and not the boy's themselves, but Chiaki either took it in stride, or this kind of thing was completely normal.

" **Oh yes, here they are."** Chiaki gave the lady a sheet of paper, with a name and photo besides each member of the GOM. Here, it seemed like they only had a last name, with no first name. Chiaki had warned them of this, as only he upper class had first names to differentiate them from their predecessors.

" **Momoi?"** The woman called out first.

" **Here."** Momoi replied. Chiaki had the whole group practice speaking the _Estrelían_ language, and since they were already naturally born to understand it, there was no real problem with the way the group spoke. Probably. Another thing they had learned was that, as bodyguards, they were expected to respect only the upper class. Normal commoner people were people they didn't have to greet if they passed by one, or call that person formally. However, as all of them came from a culture that valued such customs, they were having slight difficulty on that part.

" **Here you are young lady, you are in Silver, Class A."** Momoi felt a part of her die inside as she had to just take her schedule and leave without thanking or bowing to the other woman.

This continued until finally only Akashi was left. The whole group was waiting in anticipation as the only person among them who got into the _Gold_ section was given his schedule and class.

" **Akashi?"** Akashi stepped forward without so much as a word. The woman spotted him, and handed over his schedule. " **You are in Gold, Class A. Congratulations."** Akashi slightly inclined his head in thanks, enough for it to be noticed by the woman in front of him, but not enough for everyone else around him to see. The woman, seeing it his as a gesture of thanks, had her eyes widened slightly in surprise, before giving Akashi a small smile and urging him to go back to his group. Akashi obliged, and walked back towards the group of six, where his friends all bombarded him, (excluding Murasakibara and Midorima) awaiting his answer. Akashi just smirked before announcing his class.

"Class A." The rest of the group sighed in relief. They thought that if their leader got into any other class that the poor boy would have another mental breakdown and turn into Bokushi again or something.

"Oh? Congratulations Akashi. It's very difficult for a non- _Shadow_ to achieve such a high ranking." The group wasn't fazed by Chiaki's statement however, as Akashi tended to make the impossible possible. "Alright then, le's get going you guys. The bell will ring in 5 minutes. This caused the six children to immediately look at their schedule, and begin rushing off to their respective classrooms, with Momoi and the other GOM, excluding Akashi running to find Class A for their tier. Akashi followed Chiaki to Class A, where he remained unsuspecting of a very prominent rival in that same class.

* * *

 ***~** _ **Gold**_ **Tier, Class A~***

The teacher had first asked Akashi to introduce himself, which he did, as Chiaki's bodyguard, and then as Akashi. Of course, this information stunned everyone, because only a bodyguard, not a member of any noble house, and to top it off (in their opinion it was something that topped it off) an _Alcien_ of all things?! Not even a full Alcien, if his ears were anything to go by, and sure his spiritual power was high, but not enough to be considered at the level of a half- _Shadow_. So that left a _Kurian,_ but he had no animal features, so, what else could he be? He couldn't be a _Zenian_ , could he? Because that would be _sooo_ embarrassing if that was the case. ' _He's probably just a really weak half-Shadow and half-Alcien…'_ the majority class thought. One person in the room however, besides Akashi himself and Chiaki however, had her suspicions.

" **Now then Akashi, your seat will be over there, in between Lady Chiaki and Lady Atsune."** The room broke out into multiple whispers at this newfound knowledge. As Chiaki's bodyguard he would have the privilege of sitting next to her, which by default, also meant the number one student in the whole _Gold_ division. The 2nd Lord's youngest daughter, Mayuzumi Atsune, fiancé to the famous _Platinum_ rumored to be the last descendent of the powerful 1st Lord Kuroko family, Kuroko Tetsuya.

Akashi approached the two ladies and sat down after bowing to the young Mayuzumi, and conducting the proper customs of respect that he had learned earlier that week, courtesy of the Takao siblings.

" **A pleasure to meet you Lady Atsune."** Akashi stated, with the young Mayuzumi responding in kind.

" **And I you, Sir Akashi***."** Then Akashi took his seat, and class began.

* * *

 ***~Time Skip~***

Lunchtime had rolled around, and everyone was getting ready to go have lunch with their friends. Throughout the class, the teacher had constantly barrage the students with questions on things like how their element worked, how each _spirit_ type would affect one's fighting style, and how one slows down the _spirit_ power usage. Akashi, Chiaki, and Atsune were the only three who had answered everything correctly. This caused Akashi to immediately be established as one of the students that the others needed to tread carefully around. The redhead would also avoid any questions about the other half of his heritage it seemed. Chiaki and Akashi were getting up to leave and find the rest of the GOM and Momoi to eat their lunch with until Chaiki called out to the two of them.

" **Chiaki! Sir Akashi!"** Both turned around to meet mirthful emerald eyes and ashen colored hair framing the girl's face.

" **Yes, Atsune?"** Chiaki spoke. Bodyguards weren't expected to talk unless specifically addressed, or if their master/mistress were there, the bodyguard wasn't allowed to speak before his/her master/mistress did unless given specific permission to do so. Akashi internally scoffed at the customs this place had. How his love interest had survived that long in a place like this he had no idea.

" **Would you and your.."** Atsune's gaze flitted over to Akashi for a second, seemingly deciding on what to call him, and once her decision had been made, continued speaking. " **..friend like to join me for lunch?** _ **He**_ **might be coming to eat with me today, and my father had told me that you had been wanting to see** _ **him**_ **in person, Chiaki."** Atsune smiled a devilish smile.

" **I'm sure we would both love to join you two, but are you sure you want me there? I might interrupt your 'alone time'."** Chiaki fired back.

" **Oh no! Not at all! To tell you the truth,"** Atsune leaned in to whisper something in her friend's ear. " **We have** _ **loads**_ **of alone time on the weekends."**

" **Atsune! I didn't know you were so bold!"** Chiaki's face looked slightly flushed. A few second later however, both broke out into small ladylike giggles. Chiaki then took that opportunity after the two had calmed down to pop a question.

" **We would love to go, but would you mind if we bring some of our friends? They're** _ **Silvers**_ **. Would that guy mind?"** Chiaki questioned. Atsune started off with shaking her head in denial.

" **No, he doesn't care much for social status or power levels. He seems very sweet and kind. I only met him a few years ago once, and I was smitten already, and now…"** Atsune began staring dreamily off into the distance. Chiaki sighed, before going off and saying she would meet back up with Atsune on the rooftop, where they usually ate.

"Pardon me for asking, but, who is _he?_ " Akashi switched back to Japanese he still like to use his mother tongue whenever it wasn't necessary.

"Oh, he's just her love interest I've never met him before, but I guess we'll be meeting him today. His name is Tetsuya as well. Quite a coincidence isn't it?" Chiaki smiled as she said this, looking at Akashi as she said this, as if she knew something that he didn't.

"Indeed." Was Akashi's only reply, with the rest of the walk being carried out in silence, at least, until they met up with the rest of the group, and then proceeded to the rooftop.

* * *

 _ ***'Dame' is the female version for a knight.**_

 _ ****Yeah, I realized that I should use first instead of last names, so I changed that in the last chapter as well, and Kuroko is considered a 'Lord' despite have a military status because of his family's house and for his identity at the Academy.**_

 _ *****Since Akashi and the rest are acting like bodyguards right now, they are seen as knights, and hence have the 'Sir' before their names.**_

 _ **So please tell me your thoughts everyone! I hope you found this chapter at least satisfactory and I am sorry it it sounded choppy. This chapter was written in intervals unlike the rest of my chapters, which were written in one sitting. See you all later!**_


	7. Chapter 7 Laughs and Hidden Enemies

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 ** _Hello everyone! School has been killing me, and I still havề a lot to do, so i'm not sure when I'll be able to update after this one, but I'll try my best! I won't be abandoning any stories however, so rest assured, (if your are still actually reading this story, which I really hope you are because that would make me very happy) this story will still be continued, and, as always, thanks for all of the follows, favorites, and reviews! *^-^*._**

 ** _Reviews:_**

 ** _BabyNightmareLady: I'm glad that you liked the update! Thank you for staying with my stories as always!_**

 ** _MadHatterBlue and MadHatterRed: I'm glad ou like the story! And, I hope your heart hasn't failed yet either, since I think that you'll probably need it for the rest of the heartbreak that will happen in this series, although I won't be spoiling anything! ^-^_**

 ** _PandaTrash: Thank you! I'm glad that you like my stories! I hope to keep your interest in this story up! And here's the update!_**

 ** _RinFantasy: Thank you for staying with my stories! And, yes, Akashi is (and I'll most likely will be for the majority of the story) a very sad and heartbroken character. T^T_**

 ** _Please excuse my grammatical errors I may make. I hope you enjoy this chapter!_**

* * *

 _The Shadow's Duty_

 _..._

 _Chapter VII: Laughs and Hidden Enemies_

* * *

Recap:

" _Oh, he's just her love interest I've never met him before, but I guess we'll be meeting him today. His name is Tetsuya as well. Quite a coincidence isn't it?" Chiaki smiled as she said this, looking at Akashi as she said this, as if she knew something that he didn't._

" _Indeed." Was Akashi's only reply, with the rest of the walk being carried out in silence, at least, until they met up with the rest of the group, and then proceeded to the rooftop._

* * *

 ***~** _ **Gold**_ **Tier Academic Building, Rooftop~***

"Ehh~ What an amazing view-ssu!" A blonde exclaimed as he ran up to the railing at the edge of the roof.

"Oi, Kise! If you fall off I'm not catching you!" Aomine hollered from the doorway.

"Eh?! How mean!" And then came the blonde's signature crocodile tears.

"Everyone, please get settled. I believe that the two others will be arriving soon." Chiaki lead them all to where Kise was previously standing, and sat them down. "Well, before the two come, lets share all of our current pieces of information." Chiaki's face turned serious now, and the two troublemakers, namely, Aomine and Kise, finally stopped bickering with each other and paid attention, just like everyone else. "Good. Now that he we're all settled down, Midorima, why don't you start?" All turned to the green haired male, awaiting his reply.

"Well, I suppose I could begin…" The boy mumbled. The rest of the group internally sweatdropped. ' _How can you be acting all tsundere over this?!'_ They all thought. Midorima clearing his throat brought them all out of their thoughts. "Well, in our class today, the majority of the students seemed wary of us after we gave our introductions."

"Hmm...I see." Chiaki appeared thoughtful, as if trying to find an answer for the strange behavior of the _Silver_ students. The rest of the group eagerly awaited her response. "...Oh! That might be it!" Chiaki clapped her hands together in realization.

"What is it Chiakicchi?" Kise questioned calmly, although the eagerness in his voice still managed to seep through.

"Most likely, the reason for your classmates suspicions were the races you guys stated. Most people obviously aren't half- _Zenian_ , or rather, half-human. Since, as I'm all sure your guys have learned over the past few weeks during our history lessons, _Zenians_ are exactly the most...sought after race when it comes to prospective life partners, for more reasons than just their lifespans. And so, even though you all didn't explicitly state that you guys are half- _Zenians_ , I'm sure your classmates have their suspicions, since, unlike the _Gold_ tier students, they are far less arrogant, and are hence going to consider the possibility of you all being half- _Zenian._ " At this statement she gave each one of them, even Akashi, a meaningful look. "I'm sure that you know what that would mean for all of your lives here on campus, full of people who would do anything to rise in the ranks, even if it means exposing someone else's deepest secrets and fears, and using it against them." The graveness of her message was amplified by the strong wind that swept across the roof at that moment. All of them remained in silent contemplation for a while before Momoi decided to speak up.

"Chiaki, what do you suggest we do?" Momoi and Chiaki had gotten closer over the past few weeks of training, as the two were the only girls in the group, and hence, helped each other out, and had gained respect and a sense of comraderie for the other.

"Truthfully, I'm not quite sure. For now, I suggest that we should all lie low, and try to to not gain too much attention, but besides that, I think you all can only try to avoid any pressing questions they may give to you hope for the best."

All of them could only nod solemnly, with even Murasakibara and Aomine being unnaturally focused.

"Alright, lets just focus on the present for now, and enjoy our lunch. My friend will be bringing someone with her later, but she said it might take a while, so we should start eating first."

* * *

 ***~** _ **Platinum**_ **Tier Academic Building, Entrance~***

Kuroko's morning classes had just finished, and was about to make his way to the canteen, but was met with the sight of Atsune waiting for him at the entrance to the building, two supposedly homemade lunches in hand.

" **Tetsuya!"** Atsune smiled and made her way to where he was standing.

' _Tetsuya'_

Kuroko internally flinched at what she called him. He knew she called him that because of their current 'relationship,' but, only really wanted one person to call him by that name, and hearing her say it made him remember his crush's voice, stunning fiery hair, and beautiful eyes, whether they were heterochromatic or monochromatic. The mental image made Kuroko smile a bit, and for his eyes to become soft, surprising Atsune, who had never seen him smile before. The smile faded away just as quickly as it had come, however, when Kuroko remembered how he had chosen to let the love of his life go for the his own sake. ' _Yes,'_ Kuroko thought, ' _Akashi-kun deserves more than a lying and blood-stained creature for a lover. I would only hurt him, so no matter how much I yearn for him, I cannot give in. Besides, as if he could ever love someone like me. It was one-sided from the start. But even so, I...'_ Atsune had finally gotten within arms length of him, drawing his attention away from his thoughts, he bowed and kissed her hand, as was traditiom for a man to do towards his betrothed every time the two met. This action caused Atsune to slightly flush, and draw away her hand hurriedly, as if it was burned. Her action threatened to draw a laugh from Kuroko. Soon however, Kuroko felt like he couldn't hold it anymore. The girl looked so funny, all flushed and shocked, gripping her skirt tightly….it was also kind of...cute. So, Kuroko gave in, and, he laughed, loud and pure.

* * *

 **Atsune POV:**

' _That was so embarrassing!'_ Was the only thing I could think after Lord Tetsuya had kissed my hand. I mean, sure, it was tradition, but that was like, 1000 years ago! Even if we do live way longer than that, do we seriously still have to do that?! I gripped my skirt tightly, and let my head fall to try and hid my embarrassment. It was silent for a few seconds, before I thought I heard something; a laugh. But that couldn't be right, right? After all, while Lord Tetsuya was known for his kindness, showing emotion was one thing he was known for not showing, do him laughing was impossible. But then, the noise continued, and there was no one else around, so I heisantly peeked up at him, and when I saw him, my whole head shot up, and my brain finally fully registered the sound coming from my fiancé's lips. ' _Beautiful'_ was my only thought, as I watched his eyes crinkle with laughter, teal locks dancing with the wind, with the sun high in the sky, enhancing his natural beauty, and his lips slightly parted and letting out sounds that could only be described as something akin to the tinkling of bells on a peaceful moonlit night, and pale hands raised near his mouth, blocking some of the sound, but still leaving the majority of the sounds he was making audible. I could only stare on in stunned silence, too afraid to break the silence should my interruption cease the heavenly sounds. When the sounds finally stopped, all I could think was:

' _Big Brother, I think that now...I might just understand why you threw away everything so many years ago...'_

* * *

 **Third Person POV**

After Kuroko had finally calmed down, he asked what Atsune was doing here.

" **Lady Atsune, what brings your here? Did something happen?"** Kuroko was worried. She could have notified him with the crystal ball if it was something of less importance, but the fact that she came here personally must have meant that it something very important.

" **Umm... well, I was wondering, if…"** Atsune turned away. ' _Really! I can't stay calm. Just ask him Atsune!'_ Atsune was conducting an inner monologue. Even if she was confident around her friend and her friend's companion earlier, actually accomplishing the task was far harder!

" **Yes?"** Kuroko was curious. If she was acting like this, was it something embarrassing?

" **W-Would you like to eat lunch with me!"** Atsune was practically shouting at the last part. She had been avoiding asking him for the past two weeks because she thought he was busy, but after urging from both of her parents, she finally decided to ask him. Also, with the arrival of her best friend, at least she would have one person with her should things go downhill.

Kuroko on the other hand was shocked. He didn't really expect anything like that, but seeing as there was no harm in doing so, he easily agreed.

" **Alright, I don't particularly mind. Thank you for the invitation, Lady Atsune. I hope you will find my company pleasurable."** Kuroko bowed slightly, causing Atsune to become flustered once again.

" **O-Of course. Thank you for accepting my invitation."** Atsune hastily bowed back. ' _Geez, get a grip Atsune. You are not some rabid fangirl meeting her favorite idol! He's your fiancé for crying out loud. You're going to have to get used to it eventually!'_ With a new resolve, Atsune gave him one of her homemade lunches. " **I figured that you hadn't gotten your food yet, and I wanted to make something for you, but I can't guarantee the quality, so I apologize in advance for any foul taste you may encounter."**

Kuroko stated a pt the lunch for a few seconds before taking it and smiling slightly. " **Thank you, Lady Atsune. I'm sure it will taste wonderful."** Her tsundereness reminded him of Midorima. She quickly became cheerful once he accepted her food, and began walking side by side with him towards the _Gold_ Academic Building.

" **It's this way, Tetsuya! We're eating on the rooftop. I hope you don't mind, but a friend of mine and her companions are eating with us."** She smiled up with him.

" **Of course not. The more the merrier."** His statement drew a gentle laugh from her lips, causing Kuroko to smile as well. The rest of their journey was full of Atsune talking about random things, and Kuroko nodding in confirmation every now and then, indicating that he was listening. ' _Maybe…just maybe,'_ Kuroko thought, ' _I can learn to love her.'_

* * *

 ***~** _ **Meturio**_ **Palace, Underground Dungeons~***

Footsteps echoed along the dreary stone halls as a shadowy figure made its way past a seemingly endless amount of locked cells. Then, the figure stopped and all became silent.

" **You were right."** The shadowed figure said, giving a quiet smile towards the dark of a cell. " **They're back. Both of them."** For a few moments it seemed as if nothing had happened. Then, there was a sound of a shuffle in the darkness, and soon, two hands, both gnarled and overused, emerged from the shadows, and beckoned the figure to come closer. The figure however, only chuckled, and slightly shook its head.

" **I'm afraid I can't do that sire. I'm afraid that it would be far too suspicious for me to suddenly up and leave. It is too early in the game for that. However, I do have something to ask of you…."**

The rest of the two's conversation was lost to the howling winds of the night that roamed the decimated earth, and the moon their only witness.

* * *

 _ **Cliffhanger! I guess I could call it one, since I'm not letting Akashi and Kuroko meet after all~ Tell me your thoughts everyone! And as I said earlier, I'm not sure when the next update will be, but no stories will be abandoned, and I will try my best to update at least once a month, although last month I didn't really do anything, so I'm sorry about that. I hope you enjoyed his one though, and, as always, reviews will be responded to in in the next chapter! See you all later!**_


	8. Chapter 8 Lost Friends & Broken Hearts

**_Hello! As I said in my profile, I was planning to write chapters for this story and 'The Phantom Heir'. My school has finally finished, so I should be able to update more frequently for the rest of the month. I do have a few classes during the week though, so I might be a bit busy, but I'll try my best!_**

 _ **Thanks to everyone who favorited, followed, and reviewed, as well as those who just read silently! Now on to the reviews!**_

 _ **Reviews:**_

 _ **AkaneShiro: I'm glad that you find it exciting! I hope you have enjoyed the story so far, and that you like this chapter as well!**_

 _ **BabyNightmareLady: Thanks for always reviewing! I'm glad that you like it, and don't worry, Akashi and Kuroko will end up together!**_

 _ **Erza B: Sorry for the confusion! Now that I look back on it, my sentence was kinda confusing. _ I meant that I didn't let them meet in in that chapter. In this chapter though, they will be meeting! As for the arcs, I was planning to have 3, although that may be extended to 4 if I decide to make the tournament a separate arc...**_

 _ **PandaTrash: Thank you! I'm glad you like it! The GOM and Akashi will be meeting with Kuroko in in this chapter, so I hope you enjoy it!**_

 _ **Random . Girl: Yes don't worry! There is more! I'm glad you read my story!**_

 _ **Shiroshi.2: Sorry for keeping you hanging for so long! I hope you're still reading this story and that you enjoy the chapter!**_

 _ **Now then, on to the story!**_

* * *

 _The Shadow's Duty_

 _..._

 _Chapter VIII: Lost Friends & Broken Hearts_

* * *

 ***~Rooftop,** _ **Gold**_ **Tier** **Academic Building~***

"Chiakicchi~ I'm tired." Kise whined for the umpteenth time. The group had finished their food a few minutes ago, and were now awaiting the arrival of Atsune and the girl's fiancé. However, it seemed like their resident blonde was getting bored already. At least, that was how it seemed. In reality, the only thing that was going through Kise's mind was to get his former captain was far away from the rooftop as possible. But the question was, how? Kise racked his brain for any possible solution to his current dilemma. Before he could come up with one however, the door to the rooftop creaked open, and everyone's eyes focused on the two at the door. Kise heard a sharp intake of breath that came from the direction of his former captain. There, standing by the door frame was an ashen hair colored and emerald eyed girl, with the _Gold_ emblem on her uniform shining proudly in the sun.

The reason that everyone was startled, however, was the person standing next to the girl, with his teal hair being caressed by the breeze, and his normally blank eyes widened with shock.

"Tetsu?!" Aomine was the first to say what was all on their minds.

"'Tetsu'? Who's that? Could that be you Tetsuya?" Atsune inquired, turning her head towards the teal-haired male. In the background, a certain redhead began silently fuming at the way the _girl_ had addressed _his_ tealnette. The people around him, sensing the dangerous aura, slightly scooched away, praying that their former captain wouldn't quite literally burst into flames and attack the poor girl. Before anything could progress any further however, Chiaki quickly intervened, eliciting a quét sigh if relief from the rest if the GOM.

"Of course not Atsune, I'm sure that my friends just mistook Lord Kuroko here for someone else. Right guys?" Although her voice was cheerful and assuring, her side glare at the GOM told them the real meaning behind her last question.

"Yeah! Absolutely. Aominecchi here has reeeeaaally bad memory-su! Sorry about that Milord. He probably mistook you for our friend back home. You look a lot like him!" Kise spoke for the rest of the group, but he could feel the glare his former captain was giving him. Obviously the redhead still remembered Kise's teensy weensy lie about the 'Tetsuya' they heard about earlier that day not really being Kuroko Tetsuya, their friend. And now that the Atsune and Tetsuya, who the crowds had earlier claimed were the perfect couple, had appeared, and the 'Tetsuya' of that couple had turned out to be _the_ Kuroko Tetsuya...well.

"Ah...It's no problem…." Kuroko looked at Kise expectantly, encouraging him to keep up the act. Kise, catching on, replied perhaps a bit too quickly.

"Kise."

"It's nice to meet you Sir Kise." Kuroko responded coolly, as if it truly was his first time meeting the overly-enthusiastic blond.

"And I you, Lord Kuroko." The tealnette seemed to flinch at the sound of his title. After that, the group's lunch passed by quite uneventfully, excluding the redheaded ex-captain's occasional subtle glares at the one and only Mayuzumi Atsune. Five minutes before the next class would start, Kise called out to the tealnette, effectively stopping the boy in his tracks.

"Yes, Sir Kise?" Kuroko and Atsune were both already at the door, and the blonde only smiled, before voicing his question.

"Would you mind staying back for a while Lord Kuroko? My friends and I would love to have the chance to talk to the student who aced the exam so easily." Kise instantly regretted his words once he felt the burning stares in his back, and was internally beating himself up. ' _A chance to talk to the student that aced the exam? Are you an idiot Kise?!'_ Was what was most likely going through the minds of all his friends at the moment. But it was the best thing he could think of! Now just to see if it worked…

At that moment, he looked over towards Kuroko, only to see the male whisper something in Atsune's ear. Once he pulled away, he smiled at her, earning a slight blush from the silver-haired girl, who then made her way down the stairs quickly, but without losing any of her ladylike grace. Once the girl was out of sight, the tealnette made his way over to the group, and sat down with them, the atmosphere tense and heavy with unanswered questions. The silence was eventually broken by Chiaki's voice.

"Lord Kuroko right? I'm Takao Chiaki. I don't believe we've been formally introduced yet. I've heard a lot about you from Atsune." Chiaki smiled and extended her hand in greeting. Kuroko returned the gesture, which spurred Chiaki on, causing her to continue the conversation. "So, Lord Kuroko, what exactly are you doing here?" The world seemed to still as she asked that question. Silence draped over them for a few long seconds before the tealnette finally answered.

"I don't believe that I quite understand your question Lady Chiaki. The only reason the come to a school would be to study no?" Both the GOM and Chiaki were stunned by his response. Really? That was it? He left all of his friends without warning for something like that..? It broke the GOM's hearts, and it was at this point that their resident redhead seemed to have reached his limit in terms of patience.

"Cut the cr*p Tetsuya! You can't seriously expect us to believe that right? Can you honestly tell me that you would have just left all of your friends in Seirin, and all your friends that came here after you for something as trivial as just studying _somewhere else?_ If so, then you truly aren't the person I thought you were." Before the tealnette even had a chance to respond, Akashi stood up, and with gritted teeth, clenched fists, and a broken heart, he ran off, leaving the rest of the GOM and Chiaki on the rooftop with Kuroko. The rest of the GOM quickly snapped out of their shock from Akashi's outburst, and chased after their friend, shooting worried glances at Kuroko before proceeding. As Midorima was the last to leave, Kuroko quickly grabbed the greenhead's arm, making the male turn around to face him, emerald orbs clashing with teal ones.

"Wha-Kuroko?! Now isn't the time nandayo! I need to go help the idiots find Akashi and-"

"Midorima-kun, I know this isn't the right time, and that none of you can really trust me right now, but please believe me when I tell you that I have something that I need to do here, and that all of you need to get home as soon as possible."

"...I'm sorry Kuroko, but I'm not sure I can believe you after what you said earlier. I think I'm speaking for all of us when I say that you hurt us all." Midorima's expression was one of hurt, his emerald orbs filled with sadness and disappointment, shocking Kuroko, loosening his grip on his friend's arm, allowing the greenhead to go back to finding his friend.

As the door to the rooftop door creaked shut once Midorima had left, Kuroko was left alone, the afternoon sun beginning to be covered by clouds that seemed to appear out of nowhere. Suddenly, the boy felt water on his cheeks, and said boy raised his hand to his face, only to find that he was crying. Before he knew it, the boy was on his knees, and began to laugh, but it was one made up of only pain and sadness, one that contained the boy's regrets for his words.

' _What have I done…'_

* * *

 ***~Schoolyard,** _ **Gold**_ **Tier** **Academic Building~***

While the rest of the school was in class, a certain redhead was in the school's resident forest, hidden from the rest of the world's prying eyes, as he tried to organize his thoughts.

' _Why did I do that? It's Tetsuya's life isn't it? I shouldn't care about what he decides to do with it and yet…'_

' _ **Ah, poor Seijuro, oh my dear heartbroken Seijuro...'**_

The new voice in his head shocked Akashi, causing to open his previously closed eyes, seeing no one.

' _Did you hear that you Rai?'_

' _No, Akashi. Did you hear something?'_

' _Then…'_

' _ **It was me brother. Don't tell me you forgot about me already.'**_

' _Bokushi!...'_

' _ **That was a bit hurtful Seijuro, surely you would think that after 2 long years together you would have come up with a better way to call me. But, no matter. Since you have yet to come up with a name for me other than "Bokushi" I will have to decide on my own name. Hmm...how about Seiji? Yes, I quite like that name. From now on you shall call me Seiji, brother.'**_

' _What are you doing here?'_

' _ **How rude Seijuro. Months of not even talking to each other and you want to get rid of me as quickly as possible? As for your question, aren't you the only one who knows the answer to that?'**_

' _What? What do you mean Seiji?'_

' _ **You're the one that left an opening for me to talk to you just now. Obviously it must mean that you need me for**_ **something** _ **.'**_

' _I don't need you for anything, leave!'_

' _ **Are you sure? You're obviously hurt Seijuro. I knew nothing good would come out of chasing after Tetsuya.'**_

' _Stop acting like you know me Seiji! We may share a body, but nothing else.'_

' _ **No need to be so defensive brother. Everyone knows about your little crush on Tetsuya. But it seems like that affection wasn't reciprocated. After all, look at that Atsune girl was it? That smile he gave her earlier was beautiful wasn't it? He never looks at you like that anymore does he?'**_

' _SHUT UP, SHUT UP, SHUT UP!'_

' _ **Come now brother, you simply must accept the truth, and move on.'**_

Before Seijuro realized it, tears began escaping his eyes, and he slumped to the ground next to a tree, surrounded by a field of teal irises.

' _ **Ah, Seijuro, don't cry, it's okay, I can help you, don't worry. Just let me handle things alright? You don't have to worry anymore. Just rest. I'll take things from here.'**_

All of a sudden, the tears stopped, and the redhead's expression changed to one of a smirk. The redheaded male then stood up and stretched.

"Ah! It's been a quite a while since I've been able to move around like this." The boy's eyes opened to reveal one the color of the red of dawn, and the other the shade of gold. "Now then, I suppose I should be getting back to class.

As he left, he snapped his fingers, and suddenly, the field of irises was set aflame, and the beautiful flowers slowly wilted and turned black, before disappearing altogether, leaving behind nothing but a pile of ashes, which were soon blown away by the wind.

* * *

 _ **Writing this made me really sad! I almost cried! T^T I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter, and hopefully I'll be able to update 'The Phantom Heir' today and another chapter of this story tomorrow! See you all later!**_


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